WHEN they order the 100-seater they will most likely try to extract concessions from us in exchange for DL/UA 100-seat rates. That's where we have to stand strong and say NO CONCESSIONS. And make no mistake, they will insist that they don't have to order it if we don't agree...that's also BS, as Delta demonstrated when they tried to tie their 100-seat order to concessions. They still ordered it AND their pilots got what they wanted.

 

I fully expect a 100 seat order will only be used as a bargaining chip IF one is ever made. Management could care less about the seat gap between the 175 and the 319. If they did they could have ordered a couple hundred more e190s by now.

A couple things worry me about a potential group 1 order.
-if an order is announced the pilot group will get all angry bc the pay is too low. Good point but if these are growth aircraft and not g2 replacements then that is fine by me. We can try and make up the pay in 2020.
-if management comes out and says we will order these planes but then they plan to park g2 planes that should be a no-go.

I personally think we won't have to worry about this. Parker and co have made it clear the 100 seater doesn't make economic sense at mainline in their view. They'll continue with 76 seaters and 319 where DL flies 717s and CS100s.

Plus come 2020 they're going to pull all sorts of old trick plays out of the playbook to get us distracted and even more fragmented. We're going to have our hands full. It's sure going to be interesting.

 

United just signed AWAC to fly 65 50 Seaters. And now they want CommutAir to operate up to 60.

 

Or a big Carrot Pay raise to all those here with all the retirements coming in exchange for the WO's to fly the 100 seat jets.

 

Yep. They'd love nothing more than 100 seaters at the regionals. The old guys near retirement would probably be all for it like slice and Route66. Our only chance if that happens is for the BOD to not send it out for a vote.

All it would take for a TA to pass with 100 seaters at the regionals would be DL plus a couple percent and maybe a token slash trip or some other QOL fix. It'd pass 60-40 easy.

 

Just got a pic from a friend of a 190 he's in. There putting new interiors in the 190s? Strange.

 

Someone just posted at pic on belowtheline. Looks like the AB319 new interior.

 

Yep, I agree!

 

They've been doing that for a while now. Paint and interior are regularly scheduled maintenance items. When they're due to be replaced, they replace them. Don't read too much into it.

 

The problem as I see it with group 1 is that while the pay scales are attractive for the company, growing group 1 creates a perpetual training bubble. Even with only 20 in the fleet, the turnover is high. With a more sizable fleet of group 1 airplanes, the movement at the top will dictate that guys will be able to bid to group 2 by year 2. Any cost savings the company might have gained from those pay scales is washed away in training cycle costs. I say that if they come selling higher group 1 pay in the next round in exchange for something else, we shouldn't give them back anything more than those greasy biscuits on our breakfast plates, because it'll benefit them too.